Fleet Captain
Real World Definition Fleet Captain is a rare military title that may be bestowed upon senior naval captains for a variety of reasons, the most common of which is to temporarily take command of more than one vessel. The rank can, therefore, be interpreted as a close equivalent to Commodore or to the 19th century rank of Flag Officer. The main distinction of a Fleet Captain is that normally the title is strictly temporary for the duration of a single mission. Historical Usage Fleet Captain has appeared in the navies of Germany (Flottenkapitän) and the United Kingdom as an unofficial title dating back to the 18th century. During World War II, the United States Department of the Navy proposed that the rank of Fleet Captain be created for the U.S. Navy as a position between Captain and Rear Admiral. When Commodore was established in 1943, the proposal for Fleet Captain was changed in that the rank would be held by aircraft carrier captains on vessels that had multiple O-6s serving aboard. Proposals for Fleet Captain indicated the rank would display five gold stripes on a sleeve and one gold star as a collar device. The idea was dropped in 1944 and has not been proposed since. Definition in the Star Trek Universe Fleet captain was a Starfleet title given to a senior captain with a different set of responsibilities than a starship captain. This may have been a higher rank than captain or even commodore, although it did not possess a permanent position in the rank hierarchy. In 2264, after promotion to fleet captain, Christopher Pike passed command of the starship [http://memory-alpha.org/en/wiki/USS_Enterprise_%28NCC-1701%29 USS Enterprise] on to Captain James Kirk. In 2266, as a fleet captain, Pike was engaged in a training exercise aboard an antiquated Class J starship. The vessel's baffle plate ruptured and many of the trainees were killed. A number were saved by Pike, but at the cost of being rendered a "complete invalid". Despite his catastrophic injuries, Pike remained on the active duty roster as a command-grade officer. (TOS: "The Menagerie, Part I", "The Menagerie, Part II") In the 2260s, Fleet Captain Garth was one of Starfleet's most decorated captains, the hero of the Battle of Axanar. Garth was injured and recovered among the natives of Antos IV, where he learned of the Antosians' bizarre metamorphic biochemistry control. The strain on Garth's system was too much, he was driven insane by learning their abilities. His life was saved, but maddened, he ordered a starship to fire on the planet, the crew mutinied and Fleet Captain Garth was sentenced to treatment at Elba II. (TOS: "Whom Gods Destroy") Use of the rank in Star Trek: Second Fleet Online The rank of Fleet Captain in Star Trek: Second Fleet Online would be used to sometimes distinguish senior captains where there are no flag officers present, but could easily distinguish seniority between the starship commanders at the rank of Captain. In ST: SFO, this rank is only offered in the Command Division as it is basically worthless in the other divisions. Should members in other divisions be at the rank of Captain, they would earn a promotion to the flag rank of Commodore. Fleet Captains in ST: SFO might be seen as either Task Force or Tactical Wing Commanders. Rank Insignia History References *Real World Definition *Star Trek Definition Category:Second Fleet Online Rank Structure